The Hidden Gems In and Under Our Cities

September 6, 2013 - 10:00am

We tend to think that there’s nothing new left to discover. But, a new breed of explorer has found a whole new frontier: hidden urban landscapes with big “DO NOT ENTER” signs out front. Anne Strainchamps talks to a "place hacker" who’s been in, on, or under some of the world’s most outrageous spaces - and has the pictures to prove it.

Bradley Garrett is a mild-mannered academic by day. By night he’s a renegade explorer, scaling skyscrapers, traipsing through abandoned subway tunnels, and infiltrating World War II bomb shelters—mostly places with big “Do Not Enter” signs out front.

In other words, Garrett is a "place hacker," and part of a new global movement with active groups from London to Melbourne to Milwaukee. These urban explorers find adventure, adrenaline and awe in places that most people don’t dare enter. Often they get a few history lessons sprinkled in also.